Making your sex life more exciting and pleasurable is easier and more natural than you think.

By Brian Yap

Bombarded by e-mails offering bottom-dollar prices for Viagra or Cialis, it’s easy to forget that nature offers a variety of foods that help increase sexual desire, improve performance or just make things a little more fun.

Here are five other natural aphrodisiacs that are easily available:

Ginseng
It is ginseng’s appearance that first led people to believe in its sexually rejuvenating properties. The root herb, after all, resembles, depending on your perspective, a small-sized man or an oversized male organ. Amusing as that may be, few doubt ginseng’s stimulating and aphrodisiac qualities, particularly the Panax ginseng variety.

Celery
What’s long, hard and is said to stimulate arousal in women? Hint: it also goes great with a blue cheese dip. Aside from being high in fibre, celery contains high levels of androstenone, a substance some say acts as a pheromone to attract women. Its use as an aphrodisiac goes back as far as the Middle Ages; so even if scientific evidence isn’t yet conclusive, celery must be doing something to make believers out of so many.

Tongkat Ali
Native to Malaysia, Thailand and Indonesia, Tongkat Ali is known to some as the “Asian Viagra.” Its popularity as a sexual tonic has made it a ubiquitous additive in beverages like coffee and energy drinks. Some studies have shown that Tongkat Ali increases testosterone levels and muscle strength. For significant effect, skip the 3-in-1 coffee powder and go for Tongkat Ali extract instead.

Pineapple
This prickly and tart tropical fruit isn’t strictly an aphrodisiac, but it does offer an interesting side effect: making certain bodily fluids taste sweeter. Though this natural “flavour enhancer” is a popular means to help make oral sex a tastier affair, it is by no means the only fruit to do so. Fruits high in sugar such as apple, melon or mango can also make semen a little sweeter, hopefully making for happy and tasty endings.

Gingko Nut
Long proven to enhance blood circulation, (a key factor in a healthy sex life), gingko is commonly used in many Chinese dishes such as soups, stews and desserts. Its popularity as a health supplement has heightened in recent years, making it easily available. Along with improving blood flow, the mild-flavoured nut is said to improve memory, concentration and brain function, which surely helps in making “it” a night to remember.